Spondylus Route

On this tour, you will be part of this merging. Following the water routes, you will transfer from the highlands from the Andes to the whole Coast line, baptized as Spondylus due to the colorful shell that leaves all along the pacific Ecuadorean Coast. Enjoy this tour fully thanks to our motorcycles and your riding experience. Using the best hotels and eco-lodges to make this one wonderful experience.

We’ll have a briefing in our offices in Quito, where the last paperwork will be filled, gear will be given and tested and the bike of your choice will be delivered. Then, after a quick brief on roads, safety, and quick guide, you’ll depart on your way. The departure will be by 9 after all the formalities.

The final destination for this day will be Guayaquil. You’ll descend through part of Volcano avenue, enjoying the sightseeing of Cotopaxi, Illinizas, and Chimborazo, the highest mountain in the world measured from the center of the earth. You’ll reach Riobamba where is a good spot for lunch. Then continuing with the trajectory towards Guayaquil. You’ll pass by the mid-country highlands, then descend to the Coastline passing through varied colorful small towns.

After your first day of the journey, your rooms at a pretty new hotel will be ready based on single occupancy (unless requested otherwise).

For dinner, many recommendations of where to eat will be given.

When you wake up, you already feel the breeze of the coastline while you are having breakfast. Having Salinas as the Spondylus route start, fixed point on your GPS to head north on your motorcycle rental. Feeling the freedom of the wind on a warm coast. the idea is to reach Montañita early so you can enjoy fully such an iconic town visited by many and pretty rich in culture. Your hotel is in the middle of the town. Surf lessons in the afternoon, followed by dinner and then a party (Not included).

You’ll be given few suggestions of where to eat. Seafood as the main dish changes along the route, so it worth treating yourself to this gastronomic experience. Your hotel will be ready to welcome you as soon as you arrive.

We leave early to take advantage of the day in one of the best beaches in Ecuador. A short journey until we reach Puerto López, where we will leave our suitcases and after lunch, we will take what is necessary for an afternoon at the beach in Los Frailes. Being part of the Machalilla National Park, we will not have a food offer but it is worth the visit to this beach. You have to take into account that this is the only beach that has a schedule and they close at 4 in the afternoon.

A very special place has been selected for you to stay overnight. This Eco-Lodge has unconventional decorations all over and every room has a theme, that has been the hard labor of an Italian and Swiss artist in the country for the last 18 years. Also, the best place to have dinner.

We’ll have an amazing day ahead of us. After a filling breakfast, we’ll head towards Puerto Lopez main town to take a boat towards Isla de la Plata (Silver Island). Some say the island is called that way due to the number of treasures that we buried by pirates in the 1700’s. Others, that the island has that particular color due to the silverish tone the rock has due to the bird’s natural needs. Being 50 kilometers away from the coast, one thing is for sure, the island shares most of the fauna and flora that you could find in the Galapagos Islands. Its 1200 hectares are housing a huge variety of birds, including the blue boobies, hundreds of species of reptiles and mammals. The tour will also include lunch, a walk around different paths in the islands with a local guide, and snorkeling activities.

After 1 hour trip by boat, we’ll encounter an island surrounded by sea turtles and all sorts of corals and fish schools. They will be approaching the boat for us to see them. We’ll disembark on the island and next will be to have a walk towards the highest point, where several paths divert to south or west. Regardless of the way, many blue feet boobies are nesting near the walking paths. They are not afraid to show their colors nor their offspring to the visitors and is quite a colorful remark of the beauty in Ecuador.

While we walk, a local guide will explain the reason why it’s called the silver island, its history, and the ecological conservation of this place and its fauna. After lunch, we’ll go on the boat towards the was a side of the island to be able to do snorkeling and delight ourselves with the immense variety of fish and corals around the island.

Continuing with our ride going north in the Spondylus, our next stop will be Manta. A town was known for two things: the crib of Eloy Alfaro, one of the most important revolution figures in our history, and also for the paja toquilla hats.

This small city is also recognized nationally and internationally by its handicrafts, made of mimbre, piquigua, plastic, and wood. These pieces can reach prices over a few thousand dollars but are part of their community project to get funds for the town itself.

As we approach Manta, the second main maritime port in Ecuador, the view of the Pacific Coast becomes every time more impressive. The city’s most famous beach La playa del Murcielago (the bat’s beach) is a block away from our 4-star hotel. Here, you will be able to enjoy the afternoon, either by chilling at the swimming pool or having a walk around town.

As soon as we wake up, it’ll be our delight to have a buffet breakfast to fill our souls with energy again. One curious fact about every city, town, and village in the Spondylus route, is that seafood is not prepared the same way. Hence, as we go up north you will feel food differently. With our motorcycle, we’ll arrive today at the last city in our Spondylus circuit, Cojimies, located in the province of Manabi. But first, we’ll pass by Pedernales. A city devastated by the 7.8 earthquakes that took place here in 2016. We’ll have lunch here and you will be able to get to know firsthand what happened here and how is possible to help this village.

Cojimies is one of the main beaches in Ecuador, where you get to find anything you might be looking for and some others to rest. we’ll visit the south side of Cojimies, characterized by bound palm threes. The infrastructure in this place is minimal, and for that reason, we’ll have a perfect chill time at the beach.

We’ll say goodbye today to the Ecuadorian coast, not before taking a picture with the motorcycle that has been your best company throughout this epic ride. Make sure the ocean is in the back and you on your motorcycle as a farewell to the Ecuadorian coast.

Already on track, we’ll start climbing the Andes region again and you will feel that heat won’t be on our side anymore, and the humidity will change to a tropical forest type. And to have a proper closing, we would like to show you a bit more of the geographical richness of the country by visiting Mindo. This comfy town will be our last stop on the tour. Its also considered the gateway between the Coast and the Andes. Having the effect of these two climates to enrich its fauna, is considered as the best spot for bird watching and hummingbirds gathering in South America. There are over 650 species of birds. The Mindo Valley is situated inside the Nambillo protected area. Due to the number of rivers that cross it, Mindo is also the spot for activities, being the most popular the zip lines over rivers.

After we check-in, our first-class Eco-Lodge will have ready your single bed accommodation, and from there we’ll hit the town to visit one of the hand-crafted quality chocolate stores, where they will explain to us the process to get this sweet delight. The second option this afternoon is to visit the butterfly farm, a place with more than 200 species of butterflies open to the public.

Once we’re done, we head back to the town where you can enjoy a  delightful dinner (Not Included).

We finalize our tour entering in Quito from the North West, not before be able to see the Mitad del Mundo (middle of the world). A mystical place where the magnetic field plays naughty and some physical experiments can be done.

A cold beer will be waiting for us at the offices, where experiences will be shared over a cold drink.